When Coldplay burst onto the music scene a couple years ago, they were seen as only the latest in a series of British bands heralded as the next Radiohead. Though the easily digestible mellow rock of Parachutes was well received by listeners and Grammy voters alike, many people, rightly, continued to lump them together with other British wannabe bands like Travis.
With gorgeously textured compositions and more impassioned vocals, their new album, A Rush of Blood to the Head, finds Coldplay breaking out of this mold and into the upper-stratosphere of talented rock acts. As singer Chris Martin chants in the chorus to "Politik," "Open up your eyes." With music this good, it?s impossible to ignore his plea.
Rush features powerful instrumentation that is sure to wake up those who fell asleep to the soothing/syrupy sounds of Parachutes. Pulsating, catchy drum beats exist throughout Rush, accompanied either by shimmering guitars--as on the album?s first single "In My Place"--or oscillating piano-driven melodies on "Clocks" and ?"Daylight."
Enhanced by this improvement in composition, Coldplay's emotive style emerges with even more poignancy than the brilliant "Trouble" could muster on their first offering. This is a band that is simply at its best on slower, melodic piano- and string-driven tracks such as "Warning Sign" and the particularly impressive "The Scientist,"--a song that builds upon a simple yet captivating melody until it fantastically crashes down in a flurry of desperation and love.
Through the use of crunchier guitars and more dynamic percussion, on Rush, Coldplay manage to demonstrate that although they may not yet be capable of releasing an album like OK Computer, they are a lot closer than one would have guessed from listening to their debut.
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